Ice refrigerating device



Aug. 30,1932. "c. F. BELSHAW 1,874,161

ICE REFRIGERATING DEVICE' 3 Sheets-Sheet.

Filed Nov. 16, 1929 INVENT%% Z 2 Aug. 30, 1932. c. F. BELSHAW ICE REFRIGERATING DEVICE Filed Nov. 16. 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 30, 1932; A c. F. BELSHAW 1,374,161

ICE REFRIGERATING DEVICE 3 Sheets-Shet 5 Filed Nov. 16. 1929 Patented Aug. 30, 1932 o'nA RIJEsiF. BELsH'A WQfor ffinnnnonn nxcnisnni ionREFEI ERA I G Vi i My invention; lrelatesto improvements in refrigerators having-niceacontainers together with accessories therefor: andithe a'obj eotss of: my improvements are, first,-toyprovideyamice 8' refrigeratingdevice akintothe mechanism-of" complete separation! .fPOD-ll. contact with; the c innenlining: oft-a refrigerator; with therexeception of-tits snsp enslon and alnage, means; sixth; to i provide am 1ce refrigerating "device:

having aniad justably and readilyremovahle: I

iceslo'asliet gate and seventh, to provide. an; iceirefrigeratingsdevice havingits componentl parts readily removable v as separate HnltSItOI'i. as aicomplet'e refrigeratingmnit.

I attain these I objects: bygithe mechanism: i1; lust-rated in the -accompany-ing drawings; a in which? Figured" is 1 afront elevation ofi a re-trig eraton w-ithiits :do'onremoved; saidirefrigerato-i rbeingequipped With' my refrigerating device; Fig.- 2; a sectional view of the refri'gera'tor: and its: refrigerating device, th gether with its door, taken on :the J line 22,' Fig; 1 Fig; 3,121 plan view: ofan ice- =rack used in my refrigerating-device Fig-g 4; a side elev-ation oi the ice rack; Fig: 53 a side elevation of the-a-djnstable' ice basket' 'gate' as used in myij refrigerating device; Fig; Stan end elevation of" the adjustable ice loasliet gate; Fig. 7'; a front elevation" oi a refrig'era-tor, with its door removed; said refrigerator being equipped with my; refrigerating deviceinstalledas a-- top ice-r arrangement; 1 Fig. 8- asectional viewof the refrigeratonandits-re fnigerating 4 device; togethenwith its door, taken ionithe line =8-8, Fi g1: '7 Rig; 9, a front- 595: elevationa'of the ice container; ice rack; and

drip; panun-it; I 16 ar -sectional view: Q i

of therice container -1 ice=rack and? drip, pan; unit taken on the line 10-10, Fig. 9:

' In Figs; I-iand 2, amechanicall type Irefr-igerator cabinet 1: ofiaiconventi'onaldesign; having an inner :li'nin-grofshel-l {2, is equipped; with suspensionshanger loolits and; ai' drain outlet-socketonconnection lzaviailable for "use with my refrigerator device-5 Fig. 1" shows front sectional; elevation through-r the re-i trigeratorcabinet Lhaving an ice :loasketi' on iceyeontainenfi anrangedtas ai sideeiceri; The basket: 52 is 1 attached: torthe inner Shelli-2 of refrigeratorwc abinetzli-by mean'szof? the hangen bolts-3: incorporatediin :theicabinet monstr'uce tionand rhy-vmeans o f ty'pi cals'h anger members 6; The ice 2 container or;- :basketa5Lis typically? ree'niorcedbygwlooponbandblimetaliaround the entire top:andaextending-down:and" across the znormally 1 cut=away portion of g the: front on. service side: as -shown at It" is further; reeflforced around-the. bottom:- by: a." similan metal band 9irwhichaadditionally: serves; as supporting meanszfon the} ice rack 10 engage ing said ice?! rack-.10; at:its: reenfii-rcediiends 11;, Th'eiicerrackiw isteasily removedibylift? ing upwardly, and1withdrawingathroughathei ice: basket orz'c'ontainenrii. Figs.- iii-and: kdiss close: a: plan and? side: elevation-aofqthe; ice' rackiltlsshowingg its construction as ia stampe ing; from as single: sheetziof meta-1a securing a reenforced. slatted orr liar vtypea: construction: at a single operationivby-i means' of; the;;(le+'- pressediopeningsiasgzatrfii; Thissconstrn'ction and slatted-:arrangeinentzpermitsafmaxiinum ofi airzzmovement; down th'ru ithenice rack -'10:' and Fat the: same? timezby the spacingncenters' used-s controls the: extent: to which ice rw-illmelt' through: the: :ice rack; 10 and fallows-a construction: wit-hi'the; complete elimination of fabrication: joints :zor' crevicesxitoxhamper the: tinning: or other corrosion; preventive processes involved and iresultsinamore s'ani; tary andsreadi lycleanedfpieceioi equipment: Completely encirclingxthe exterior; perimeter. of :the losvenedgeiof th'evhasket adjiacent'its lower reenforcing ban-dx9sis employedsaimeta l flange. 13;: normally; of: right angular. crosssection havingian'ioutwardlyz turned .top edge oriliprltiandia; downwardly-turned lo-weriedge or lip 15. The object of employing this flange with its lip projections is to collect ice drip-v an increased amountof air to enter the basket v 5 in contact with the ice. The flange 13 is arranged to engage snugly with the exterior surface of basket 5 and is customarily attached and suspended by through bolts" and suitable washers engagin through the wire mesh of the basket as at 1? or if desired may be suspended from the reenforcing band 9 ofthe basket 5. I 7 Attached to the exterior of the flange 13 are straps 16 suitably formed for suspending and spacing the drip pan 18 under the downwardly turned lip 15 of the flange 13 and further providing for the necessary pitch, as disclosed in Figs. 2, 8, and 10 for draining the ice water drippage fromthe inner surface of the drip pan 18. The drip pan'18 consists essentially of a metallic top surface 19 with a raised lip or edge 20 extending around its perimeter as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 7, 8, 9, and 10. Ifdesired, the'drip pan 18 may be constructed with an insulating board 'over the bottom of the drip pan 18 to prevent condensation and drippage or it may employ an insulating material encased in a secondary bottom metallic shell or may be composed of two metallic shells so spaced as to secure an air space between the metal shells. In any or all designs, the drip pan '18 would be provided with a drain'outlet tube 21, which maybeintegrally fastened to said drip pan 18. Employed in connection with the drain removaldevice of the drip pan18, through its drain connection 21, any standard and commontype of drainitube and trap might be employed. An improved type of one piece drain tube 22 and full circle pig-tail: trap 23 has been designed for this purpose to overcome the veryslight trapping effect of customary designs and to replace and simplify.

' the four piecedrain and trap usually employed. The drain tube 22 and trap 23 being normally constructed of about inch seamless cupper tubing, presents a large unrestricted cross section which is not readily clogged due further to the effective static head for emptying the trap 23, said static head extending theentire heightof the tube 22. This one piece construction allows ready cleaning by placing under a water faucet and by reversing-end for endmakes it unnecessary to disassemble and clean by hand, any inner complicated parts. 'It has been specifically found by experiment and test that the combination of my 2 equipment above described,b0th because of the general open nature of the construction used and the clearance tolerances provided, have accomplished a maximum of air circulation resulting in an average temperature differential within the food compartment of 7 degrees as against 10 to 14 degrees in ice refrigerators of standard and common design. This also results in-an average relative humidity of air in the food compartment of from 7 5 to 80 percent as against 90 to 95 percent prevalent in standard makes, grades, and corres aondmg sizes of ice refrigerators.

Also t e temperature of the food compartment has been lowered by the freedom of air circulation to a point of securing average maximum food compartment temperatures all below degrees, when the outside tem-' ing medium from intimate contact with the inner lining of the refrigerator.

i From a study of the design it will readily be seen that the drain 22 and trap 23, the drip-pan 18, and the ice rack 10, are all instantly removable for cleaning and: allow complete access'to all surfaces of the basket 5, for cleaning. When desired the shell of the basket 5 itself may be readily arranged for removal by simple unhooking from its hanger members 6 or the removal of the nuts, 41 attaching the hanger members 6 to the refrigerator cabinet lining or shell 2. The en:- tire mechanism being normally of heavily tinned finish presents a new departure in improved appearance and sanitation. Employing a four sided construction thepermanently fixed front 42 allows the retention of left 'over pieces upon re-icing of the refrigerator and does away largely with the objection to ice refrigeration due to aiding in the elimination of objectionable drippage, etc. incident to the customary removal of left over pieces, the placing of the fresh charge, and the replacement of the original small pieces. This feature also will lessen by 50 per cent the time usually required in the house for servicing by the ice deliveryman. 1 As an accessory to facilitate the use of certain shapes and heights of baskets a detachable gate or shield 24 is supplied as illustrated in Figs. 5, 6, 9, and 10. The ice gate 24 is so formed as to provide a guide tube 43 along. its top edge. for retaining slid-ing mama].

plungers] or pins 25. Thelplungeris are provided with. right 'angular-lugs26' extend ing through-slotted apertures in. the guide tube portion 43 along the top 'edgeof the ice,

Wiremesh of basket 5 and provides .means for retention inplace without-1th? employment of complicated devices. The'loca-tion ofthe ice retaining gate 24} is illustratedin its; elevated position in Fig. placed only when necessary to retain a maxi;- mumnumber of pieces orquantity of ice; to avoid drippage outsidethev basket 5 due to. proportionately largequantities of heat supplied at the front of the refrigerator frequently causing theice to melt over the open front portion ofthe basket 5 When the quantity of ice is reduced, the gate 24. may belowered. to any desired height at will or completely lowered down out of the way as at 29, Fig.110,,hidden'bel1ind the permanent 1y closed. portion of basket 5 and protected by thereenforcing band 8, during the reicing operation. a At the option of the user it may be removed at will and maybedispensed within the more shallow designs of baskets, such as top-icer arrangements shown in Figs.7and'8. v I

v In side icer arrangements of the basket, 5., the use of the outwardly turned lip 14 of flange 13, with the large, open area through the ice, rack 10 and above andaround drip. pan 18, a great amount of air is induced to pass through the charge of ice in the basket 5,,thus acting as ,a baffling arrangement as Well as for drip collection purposes. The uniform spilling of cold airdown -around all' sides of the drip pa r 18 assures almost perfect distribution of cold air andfin the complete eliminationof dead corners or pqc ketsfof, fouled air. In effect there is ac complished in the wayf of circulation that which is normally attendant only witli'the use of heavily insulated' b afiles dividing the food and ice compartments of a refrigerator. The omission of such baffles, possible with my design, saves in the cost of construction and results in a more pleasing appearance and a more sanitary refrigerator. Experiments have shown that no. particular advantage accrues from the use of a battle with my design. Figs/7 and 8 illustrates substantially the same equipment as heretofore described arranged as a top icer refrigerator. In this case the same standardty'pe of drip collection means is employed as in the side icer, the

. drip-pan serving to more sharply divide the refrigtrator into foodandfice compartments. Due to the entry of the vast maj ority of heat into the front and around the doors of a $10 and is so refrigerator there is a; natural updraft at the front; and downdraft at the rear 'ofthe sim p top. icer rr ngeme t; illu t at d Thi w circulation isv further; augmented by the insulated drip pan and the slope ofTsa-me to: ward :the rear of "the refrigerator for drip removalf'atjtherear. P

. uIn the development of ice containers or baskets. for usewith-eXistin-g standard types 7 ofice refrigerators. an-entirely new; conception-of-icerefrigeration was secured and the possibilities ofv theqdevelopment of my ice refrigerating device, akin to a mechanism such as the evaporating system of;ia me-.

chanical refrigerator, was conceived. Such a mechanism for outi-lizingthe full refrigeratin-gefiect office at 32 degrees embodies; not only theibasket or. container for the'fice but,

the combination of it-with specific-types of ice racks,- d-rip 'pans,-drain devices, hanger devices and arrangement-details .as-to-clearances for the setting upof extreme'freedom of aircirculation. mechanism contemplates usage in conjuncticn with thesimZp-lest type of mechanical. refrigerator cabinet devoid of all; inner pars titions, battles, drain devices, etc- Such a cabinet design allows for. one, piece inner liningof simplest design, extreme sanitation, andan economy of construction. My new. device con-templates complete separation of the refrigerating medium from contact with the innerlining of therefrigerator cabinet, theonly attachment or contact points being in the suspension means 'of-the basket sassemblyandthe-drain tube contact. l

The, insulating material iS is assembled between the inner lining 2 and the outer shell 1. In Figs. 2 and 8,, the door l9 wi-th-itsinner lining 50, its outer lining 51, its insulating material .52, its vdoor frame 5,3, and. its gasket sealing material 54 is shown as assembled in position on hinges (not shown). Theupperinsulated portion of the refrigeratoris disclosed as being mounted on the un;insulated ventilated-storage chamber 55 as a refrigera; tor base. The-storage chamber 55 is. disclosed as being equipped with the shelf 5.6 extending for a portion of the distance between the lowered frontscre'en 57 and the wire screen 58 at the rear ofs'aidstorage chamber 55. The shelf 56; maybe provided-with an up Such a refrlgerating turned portion 59 to. prevent-spilling of the through the insulating material 48' and the outer shell 1 andwhich is further hermetical- 1y sealed relative to the insulating material N .48 and the outer shell l-by the gasket 66 and the nut 67. V

It is to be noted that the drain outlet'tube 21 is loosely entered into the drain tube 22 which has,"in turn, its end 63 loosely entered into a the hole 64, thus permitting the easy rem moval of the drain tube 22 by telescopically sliding said drain tube 22 upwardly over the drain outlettube 21 attached to the drip pan 18 until the lower end 63 of the drain tube 22 is free of the hole 64;

The drip pan 18 is provided with a plurality of lugs 68 to straddle engage one or more of the straps 16 to properly position said drip pan 18 after it has been moved over the straps 16 and into its fixed position on the straps 16 and under the ice basket 5. I

It is to be further understood that the refrigerator cabinet with -its inner lining 2,

its outer shell 1, its insulating material 48 together with the storage space 55 and its accessories was disclosed in my application for U. S. Letters Patent bearing Serial No.-

395,05O and is further disclosed in this application merely to show the general relation of such a refrigerator cabinet to the application of the ice refrigerating device which forms the basis of my claims in this application.

I claim:

' r 1. In an ice refrigerating device, the combination of an ice container having a frame member, a removable ice rack supported on the frame member of said ice container, a right ngular member extending around the lower side of said ice container, said right angular member having an upwardly and an outwardly extending lip beyond said-ice container, said right angular member being further provided with a downwardly and an inwardly extending lip within the area of the lower side of said ice container said right angular member being further suitably attached to said ice container, downwardly and inwardly extending brackets suitably attached to said right angular member at points outside of its downwardly and inwardly extending lip, anda removable drip pan supported on said downwardly and inwardly extending brackets, said removable drip pan having a drain outlet, and a removable drain member suitably supported, said removable drain member having a complete convolution of itself between its ends, said removable drain member encircling the drain outlet of said drip pan. Q

2. In an ice refrigerating device, the combination of an ice container suitably supported, a removable ice rack supported on said ice container, a removable drip pan supported below said ice container, said removable drip pan having a drain outlet, and a removable drain member adapted to encir- In an ice refrigerating device, the combination of an ice container. and a right angular member extending around the low er perimeter of said ice container, said right angular member having a collecting flange beyond'said ice container, said rightangular member being further provided with an an gularfiangeextendin'g within the area of the lower side of said ice container, said angular drainage flange being provided with a down wardly extending portion terminating in a drainage opening.

4. In an-ice refrigerating device, the combination of an ice container having oneof its sides of lesser height than the total height of said ice container and a removable gate for closing the open portion of the side of said ice container having a lesser height than the total height of said [ice container.

"5. In an ice refrigerating device,,the combination of anice container having one of its sides open for a portion of its height and a gate for adjustably closing the open portion of one of the sides of said ice container said gate being ad ustably supported on said ice container.

6. In an ice refrigerating device, the combination of an ice container having one, of its sides open for a portion of its height and a gate for closing the open portion of said ice container, said gate being capable of being adjustably supported behind said side of said ice container which is open for a portion of its height. V

7. In an ice refrigerating device, the combination of an ice container having apertures and a gate having adjustable members, the adjustable members of said gate having notches for engaging the apertures of said ice container. 7 i i 8 In an ice refrigerating device, the com bination of an ice basket, a closure member,

plungers slidably mounted in said closure member, said plungers being provided with notches for engaging said ice basket, said plungers being further provided with'handles for. slidable operation thereof.

9. In an ice refrigerating device, the combination of an ice container comprising apertured side walls, a frame member extending around the perimeter of the lower side. of said ice container, said frame member extending inwardly from the inner wall surfaces of said ice container, and. a removable ice rack having rolled ends supportedon said frame member, said removable ice rack having its rolled ends contacting with the side walls of said ice container.

CHARLES E. BELSHAW. 

